Saturday, 2 June 2012

Review: Dystopia/Greif Split

Raw Sludge Done Well

What we have here is some extremely
fucked up dirty sludge. Dystopia and Grief, two notable names in the
sludge scene, produce some truly filthy sounds here. Slow burning,
these songs seep their way into your head, filling your mind with
dark thoughts. This is the first Dystopia release to be put out on
Life Is Abuse records, which (if my memory doesn't escape me) is run
by a member of the band. When this was first released it came with a
razor blade, which apparently had Dystopia's name screened on it.

Greif begin this split, providing us
with two songs: "Lifeless" and "Fucked Upstairs."
These songs are extremely slow, featuring very repetitive riffing.
The vocals meet halfway between a death growl and a black metal rasp.
These tracks are truly misanthropic; they feel like the musical
equivalent of being trapped in an insane asylum. While I'm on that
subject, they include a sample of an obviously mentally ill man claim
he is both Jesus and Mohammed, which adds to the messed up hopeless
vibe.

Dystopia have two versions of "Sleep".
This one appeared on the Human = Garbage compilation, which is
generally considered Dystopia's first album. While the other version
is the better one, this is still great. This version is much rawer,
and a bit sludgier. The main drawback to this version is that the
clean vocals aren't as convincing. Its not that they're bad - its
just that their better in the other version. In the latter version
they create an almost ritualistic mood.

While Dystopia is mostly known for
being raw, abrasive and angry, this song shows their atmospheric
side. There is a sizeable section with clean guitar tone where
arpeggios are played. Over that includes a rare moment - clean
singing in a Dystopia song. It actually works very well, the low
subtle vocals add a very erie atmosphere to the song. This section
perfectly balances out the raw sludgy crust punk. The riffing in this
song also deserves mention. During the beginning we get a memorable
epic riff. The riffing for most of the song is more than just a few
power chords - they almost seem like the raw sludgy version of an
exotic melody.

All in all, this is a very enjoyable
release. Dystopia's side is definitely more involved, but it is
undeniable that Grief do what they do well. This a perfect example of
raw sludge done well. This is for people who like their metal slow.
While Dystopia's is a bit less slow than Grief''s songs, they aren't
exactly playing fast, especially for metal. This is not a happy
affair - but I guess thats pretty obvious seeing as this comes with a
razor blade.